Past Collections

Gravel & Gold, the shop, opened its doors in 2008. Since 2012, we have produced clothing, accessories, and home goods with an emphasis on handmade print designs. Everything (almost) is made in San Francisco, California. We've also had the pleasure of collaborating with a host of inspiring producers and artists in the Bay Area and further afield. We are honored to do this work we love with people of such excellent-high standard! Please enjoy exploring our archive!

Seasons

Collaborations

The Milanese architect Gae Aulenti was our lodestar for this Fall 2015 collection. We studied her sublime public projects, many of which incorporate pre-existing structures, as at the Musee d'Orsay and, closer to home, the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco. But it was her own home that most captured our fancy. Layering pop colors and soft textures with industrial materials, she built a domicile for reading, studying, reading, lounging, reading, and enjoying. We set out to interpret what a first class broad such as she might wear as she crosses her steel catwalk, book in hand.

There are two new prints this season. "Windowpane," designed by Holly Samuelsen, nods to Gae's frequent dispatching of a grid to unify disparate elements in her buildings. "Hatch," designed by Lisa Foti-Straus, is another interpretation of grids and smart layering. The thin crosshatching lines recall architectural drafting. We also revived Cassie McGettigan's print "First Falls" as a softener, in vivid blues and Bay Area tones, a woman's-touch in homage to a woman-architect.

Paris modeled for Lisa Foti-Straus's photographs taken at the San Francisco Art Institute.

This season, we continued to develop new basic clothing shapes and we were especially interested in investigating base fabrics for our prints. We experimented with two textured Japanese fabrics—a crinkle cotton and a rumpled broadcloth. And we made the move to produce more items in posh linen jersey and washed Fuji silk.

On this same tip, we introduced a narrative print about textiles called "Tamboro." Technically, it is our most ambitious print yet, requiring six screens of color. We also revived "Hatu," "Drake," and "Boobs."

Rachel Budde was featured in our photographs this season. Rachel is the powerwoman behind our favorite Fat and the Moon potions. She offers herbalism workshops at Gravel & Gold and other locales, and is our go-to gal for solutions to bodily bummers. Rachel was photographed against a white piece of paper by Lisa Foti-Straus. The next day, she was photographed in our homes and neighborhood by Terri Loewenthal, a fantastic Oakland-based artist and mom-idol.

We produced a small collection for the winter season of 2014, mostly because we were eager to make an overcoat. We have been immensely pleased with the resulting Lab Coat: a quilted double layer cocoon of cotton with snaps, deep pockets, and a generous sleeve that allows for heavy layering.

Two new prints were introduced as well. Lisa's "Hatu" appears on the Lab Coat and also our new Volta Pants style. Cassie's "Drake" was printed for our also-also new Raglan Dress and Raglan Top.

Beautiful Laura Schoorl is an Oakland-based designer of women's clothing and organic cotton intimates. Sometimes, she works at Gravel & Gold too. She was photographed by Lisa.

We aimed to make working clothes for working women this season. The new Nezu Top and Zeta Dress were intended to serve and not to hinder. Same thing goes for all the stretchy gear and the new, gigantic 5 AM Tote.

We, though, that a gal ought not to sacrifice outlandishness for utility. To ensure this (and in our own creative process, too) we made a lot of new prints this season. Cass was inspired by the home studio of potter Lucie Rie to make the print "Loosey Lucie." She and Holly devised the simple stripe "Rake" together. Then we off-set a former print, "Udon Dotes," to make "Many Moons." Also, as usual, "Boobs" showed up for the party.